Russia and Brazil have discussed prospects of cooperation in the space industry aimed at further development of Brazil's ambitious space program, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said.

A Russian delegation, led by Shoigu, visited Brazil during a Latin American tour on October 14-17.

"We discussed, in particular, the joint development of satellites and a separate program for the Brazilian space industry," Shoigu told reporters in Moscow on Saturday.

"We have agreed to set up a working group of professionals and experts, which will soon begin drafting proposals on this part of our cooperation," Shoigu said, adding that the joint projects will focus on Earth remote sensing and telecommunications.

Brazil has ambitious plans to become self-sufficient in launcher and space technology, although its efforts have been threatened by a shortage of funding and trained personnel.

The Latin American country has recently revived its stalled Satellite Launch Vehicle (VLS-1) project, which had been put on hold in 2003 after a pad explosion killed 21 people.

Russia is currently helping Brazil to complete the VLS-1 project using Russian technology under a previous agreement between the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB).

Source: Voice of Russia